So don't get rid of the old machine the very first day. Plan for some overlap. Duh?
(Well, to be fair, many don't. See also: Space Shuttle being retired years before the replacement is ready....) \

Many university students don't have that luxury. We have to sell one machine to cover the costs of the replacement machine. Duh. Living SEVERAL miles from the university also makes it impossible to drive there just to use the computers on days when I don't have classes. I am happy to hear you are more financially stable right now; good for you, but I don't have that luxury.

I generally try to avoid the first iteration of a new product. But It's more fortunate timing than deliberate action. If I recently bought a new iMac and a new one comes out with a new enclosure and new screen technology, I'm bummed but know that my update schedule will put me right in the sweet spot of revision b or c.

However, for products such as iPad, I simply cannot wait. I bought 3 iPads for our family and have enjoyed using it ever since. I'd rather have a year or two of experience and learning with the product rather than wait for a revision. I had already forgotten about the wi-fi issue as Apple updates the OS, provides fixes, etc.

What's the record on the iPad? One was Wonky-Upon-Arrival. I put up with it, knowing it was defective, because I don't live close to an Apple store. When I finally did make it in to see the geniuses, they gave me a new one on the spot. Apple Care is a must. I don't regret the inconvenience. Having an iPad all that time trumped the PITA factor.

Early adopters of Apple's new MacBook Air are reporting a variety of issues, including faulty logic boards, display issues and kernel panics, after two weeks of usage.

Several discussion threads on the Apple Support website detail user trouble with both the 11-inch and 13-inch late 2010 MacBook Air models. In one thread, users report flickering and freezing issues, as well as vertical lines and odd colors. Another thread details trouble with the ultra-thin MacBook's new Instant-On feature.

Apple released a MacBook Air software update on the day of its release. The update resolved an issue where the system becomes unresponsive while playing a movie trailer in iMovie, as well as a problem where the system becomes unresponsive after waking from sleep when an external display is connected. However, several of the users reporting display issues on the Apple Support forums are still having trouble after installing the update.

Editors at Cult of Mac report having experienced both the video problem and a more serious kernel panic. According to the report, an 11-inch and a 13-inch MacBook Air model have both displayed a kernel panic when attempting to wake from sleep.

Serenity Caldwell of Macworld has also reported issues with the MacBook Air display, noting that the Air's display has turned a variety of colors: gray, tan, gray-black, and blue. Caldwell consulted an Apple Genius, who suspected "the Air's logic board might possibly be at fault."

Apple unveiled the latest MacBook Air models at its "Back to the Mac" event on Oct. 20. Sporting solid state flash storage and instant-on capabilities, the MacBook Air is "the future of the notebook," according to Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs.

For an in-depth look at the new MacBook Air, see AppleInsider's review:
Review: Apple's new 11.6-inch and 13.3-inch MacBook Air (Late 2010)

First, sarcasm solves nothing, but it does make you look like an idiot.
Second, we don't expect EVERY bug to be found, but we do expect better QC than of recent from Apple.

First: Dude, relax. If you wish to think me an idiot, feel free. You have my permission. Whatev's.
My sarcasm is used to critique a person's assertions/arguments, not the person specificallyand do it in a way that amuses me. But, in general, I try to stay away from personal attacks, because I think that's mean-spirited and lowers the tone of discourse. If a person feels personally attacked by something I say, I expect to be called on it. But satire and sarcasm have a rich and vibrant history, and in my case, isn't intended as a personal attack on anyone.
If I see a chance to eviscerate your argument with facts I can back up, I will, and I will dance on the charred and smoking remains of your argument that I've just eviscerated to death (yes, I know what eviscerate means, and I know that it has no business being in the same sentence as "charred and smoking remains..." but that's me poking fun at my own literary style!). But I will still respect you as a person. Lord knows I've put my foot in my mouth enough times to lead someone to think it might be a favourite flavor or something. I know there are people in the world much smarter than me, and I look forward to being educated by them. Part of that involves me asserting my position on things, and when I'm wrong, accepting that, and learning from it. But I think we can also have fun and knock each other around a bit as well. It's the way I am with my friends anyway. Bottom line is, no harm is intended. If I do harm, I apologize.

Second: There's going to be a shakedown period in any product release. Even in Rev B, C, D & E iterations. Apple's a large company, and can't exactly turn on a dime when a problem crops up. For all the innovation they turn out every couple of years, I have to say I'm rather impressed that there aren't more bugs and problems. To me, that shows they're doing pretty good. They're not just slapping stuff together and shoving it out the door. But that's my opinion. Feel free to disagree with me.

Well obviously in your opinion they shouldn't, but considering they are supposed to be making premium quality products sold at premium prices, yes I think they should spend more time and money on QC and product testing.

I have a strong suspicion that Apples near pathological desire for secrecy is a factor that is limiting them field testing properly. Someone speculated that the iP4 antennae problem may have been undiscovered because the test examples were hidden inside cases all the time when being field tested so the issue did not come to light.

Well obviously in your opinion they shouldn't, but considering they are supposed to be making premium quality products sold at premium prices, yes I think they should spend more time and money on QC and product testing.

I have a strong suspicion that Apples near pathological desire for secrecy is a factor that is limiting them field testing properly. Someone speculated that the iP4 antennae problem may have been undiscovered because the test examples were hidden inside cases all the time when being field tested so the issue did not come to light.

Less secrecy, better products please.

1) How do you know they didnt spend more time and money on QC and product testing compared to other CE companies? Your conclusion seems to be that because there is any issue that they didnt spend any time or money on QC. That is an erroneous conclusion.

2) The fact that Apple does have mindshare they are in the public eye more than other CE companies. Therefore its possible that even a small and isolated issue affecting a very small portion of devices or users gets noticed and exaggerated more than other companies that have rampant QC issues, but if you dont care about those companies you arent likely to take notice.

3) Additionally its silly to think that Apple should lay out all their design plans and not protect their investments because you cant understand that any CE has hundreds of components made in dozens of different factories and involve dozens of different companies around the world, and there will be issues with all mass produced product types sold, regardless of the company selling them.

4) Finally, its ignorant to assume that because an Apple employee using an iPhone 4 as his personal phone with a 3GS casing indicates that for the years the iPhone 4 was tested that Apple never tested it without this 3GS casing.

Dick Applebaum on whether the iPad is a personal computer: "BTW, I am posting this from my iPad pc while sitting on the throne... personal enough for you?"

HAHAHA...seriously though in the computer business, apple is probably the best out there as far as quality control. When things get "amplified" in a forum like this, it looks really bad, but percentage-wise, apple has very few catastrophic defects.

1) how do you know they didn’t “spend more time and money on qc and product testing” compared to other ce companies? Your conclusion seems to be that because there is any issue that they didn’t spend any time or money on qc. That is an erroneous conclusion.

2) the fact that apple does have mindshare they are in the public eye more than other ce companies. Therefore it’s possible that even a small and isolated issue affecting a very small portion of devices or users gets noticed and exaggerated more than other companies that have rampant qc issues, but if you don’t care about those companies you aren’t likely to take notice.

3) additionally it’s silly to think that apple should lay out all their design plans and not protect their investments because you can’t understand that any ce has hundreds of components made in dozens of different factories and involve dozens of different companies around the world, and there will be issues with all mass produced product types sold, regardless of the company selling them.

4) finally, it’s ignorant to assume that because an apple employee using an iphone 4 as his personal phone with a 3gs casing indicates that for the years the iphone 4 was tested that apple never tested it without this 3gs casing.

They should minimise bugs. They are supposed to produce premium products. I haven't heard about so many new release problems from HP or Lenovo, and they do release much more products (so their testing departments are spread tinnier).

So what? I'm sure fast food chains and tobacco manufacturers also make a lot of many and have satisfied customers - which still isn't guarantee for products quality. It only means their products are appealing to their clients, not that they are really good or worth buying.

1) How do you know they didn’t “spend more time and money on QC and product testing” compared to other CE companies? Your conclusion seems to be that because there is any issue that they didn’t spend any time or money on QC. That is an erroneous conclusion.

Because the results speak for themselves.

Quote:

2) The fact that Apple does have mindshare they are in the public eye more than other CE companies. Therefore it’s possible that even a small and isolated issue affecting a very small portion of devices or users gets noticed and exaggerated more than other companies that have rampant QC issues, but if you don’t care about those companies you aren’t likely to take notice.

And 'why' does Apple have such exposure in the public eye? - because they are perceived as making higher quality products than their competition and people don't expect serious intrinsic faults in products they have paid thorough the nose for or that are from a company with a reputation for quality.

Quote:

3) Additionally it’s silly to think that Apple should lay out all their design plans and not protect their investments because you can’t understand that any CE has hundreds of components made in dozens of different factories and involve dozens of different companies around the world, and there will be issues with all mass produced product types sold, regardless of the company selling them.

Come off it. We are talking about intrinsic design flaws that should have been picked up in testing, not snafus on the production line or dodgy batches of components - graphics chips excepted.

Quote:

4) Finally, it’s ignorant to assume that because an Apple employee using an iPhone 4 as his personal phone with a 3GS casing indicates that for the years the iPhone 4 was tested that Apple never tested it without this 3GS casing.

Years? Bull! The CPU in the iP4 has not been around for years, let alone some of the other components like the display and N class WiFi. It wasn't his personal phone, he was inadequately field testing. If he and others had been field testing it without the casing, why didn't Apple pick up the serious design flaw, are all their testers left handed? - or was their no skin contact involved perhaps? Gee... I wonder which is the more likely?